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After posting the moqueca recipe, several of you asked if I had a recipe for Pão de Queijo, or Brazilian cheese bread, sort of like a chewy cheese puff made with tapioca flour. As a matter of fact, I do. My friend Bill gave me this recipe years ago, a favorite from his Brazilian wife Silvia. I’ve made it several times, each time with different cheeses. Talk about addictive! There are several ways to make Pão de Queijo. The only weird ingredient is tapioca flour. The recipe as presented is fairly basic. Ingredients 1 egg*1/3 cup olive oil2/3 cup milkScant 1 1/2 cups (170 grams) tapioca flour1/2 cup (packed, about 66 grams) grated cheese, your preference, though we got the best results from Mexican farmer's cheese - queso fresco1 teaspoon of salt (or more to taste) Special equipment recommended: One or two mini muffin tins. *It helps when baking with eggs to start with eggs at room temperature.

But the price tag on most commercially produced machines is a bit steep, with $300 being the bare minimum, on upward to the thousands. Seattle Food Geek Scott Heimendinger was intrigued, but decided it was a steep investment for something that essentially keeps water warm, so he DIYed it for about $75 in parts, and shared it with us on the pages of MAKE Volume 25.